


you take my hand [and drag me head first]

by flyerlies



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2019-04-24
Packaged: 2020-01-31 11:05:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18589987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flyerlies/pseuds/flyerlies
Summary: "With @TobinHeath as my roomie, I want to reprint my nails every day...!” - Christen Press, May 30th, 2013Can you believe that's a real tweet?





	you take my hand [and drag me head first]

 

**Part 1 - 2013**

 

 

“Gah- I always mess up my other hand.”

 

Christen Press sat, back curled over the hotel room desk, carefully painting teal strokes of nail polish on her right hand, unintentionally painting her cuticle alongside the nail.

 

“I can help.” Tobin Heath, Christen’s training camp roommate, queen of chill and nutmegs and - nail polish? Swung her legs over the side of the bed, placing the soccer ball permanently in her presence aside, and pulled up the second chair up to the desk.

 

They’d been in camp a day or so. Christen, a newcomer to the team who was doing her best to fit in and not ruffle too many feathers. She was playing professionally in Sweden alongside her safety net friend Kling, but _someone_ had decided to mix up rooming assignments, and so instead of Meg, she had the renowned Tobin Heath. Christen sat next to her on the bus once, and it didn’t go well. She also wound up pinned to the ground by her in college, but Christen doubted it was on purpose, and kept that memory to her self, only pulling it out for special occasions.

 

Kling knew Tobin _very_ well, and she always came up in stories about their adventures on the National Team when they were younger, or the games they played together in college. She’d never admit it, but Christen ate up every word.

 

Tobin’s movement sent the lightest wave of scent towards Christen, laundry and shampoo, and there was a moment when she felt like she couldn’t breathe.

 

“Thanks.” She choked out. She pushed the small glass bottle towards Tobin, who dipped the brush in the polish, carefully, and grabbed Christen’s hand. Her skin was soft and hands surprisingly warm; Tobin’s hand twisted under her palm, holding fingers gently before applying a smooth coat of paint. The edges were cleaner than Christen’s, even on her left hand - she was smiling when she looked up and Tobin caught her eye.

 

Tobin kept looking, smiling, and Christen couldn’t handle it, breaking contact and looking back down.

 

“This is great, thank you.”

 

“No problem. Do you have a top coat?”

 

“Oh, uh- yeah.” She handed the bottle to Tobin, who began to roll it between her hands.

“We’ll give it a minute to dry, and I’ll finish up.” There was a gentle silence between the two of them. Christen re-crossed her legs on the seat, and Tobin sat up a little bit.

 

“I never took you for a nail polish person.”

 

Tobin shrugged. “It’s art. I like to paint. I usually don’t have the patience to wait for them to dry, but every once in a while I’ll paint then when I get inspired. Plus, having two older sisters helped a lot.” She ran her fingers through her hair, pushing it from her face, absentmindedly. Christen felt like she was going to die from sheer proximity.

 

“You’re doing really great, Chris. On the team, I mean.” She looked up at her friend, an earnest but serious look in her eyes.

 

“Thanks!” She blushed a little, holding eye contact as long as she could. “Also, high praise coming from my college rival who gave the me the silent treatment for years.”

 

“Hey, _Stanford_ and _Kelley._ It was a wild combination and much easier to let you be the enemy. I couldn’t let the Stannies distract me.” They both chuckled, vaguely remembering their introduction.

 

“Can you believe that was _seven_ years ago? Kelley was so excited for us to meet, and you just kind of… half smiled at me.” Christen remembered shaking Tobin’s hand one day after a game, feeling like she had something to prove.

 

“I’m sorry! She’s kind of like Tigger and it can be a lot.” Tobin shifted and propped her elbow agains the desk. “I had big dreams and decisions to make, and was already struggling to connect with people on my own team, because I was gone so much. There wasn’t a lot of room for new people.”

 

“That’s fair- I never thought about the challenge of being so popular before.” Tobin half scowled at her, and Christen continued

 

“I’m kidding! And you don’t have to remind me about Kelley being a little… all over the place. Plus, you and I weren’t teammates until a few years ago, and that only lasted a year, so maybe it was good to not be charmed by my Cardinal ways.” Christen smirked a bit in response, flipping her hair over her shoulder, looking up at her friend again.

 

“Oh, that’s what it was - I was afraid that if I spent too much time with you, I’d have to start wearing red all the time.”

 

“And that’s exactly what happened, Miss Thorns.”

 

“Yeah, yeah. Well, consider my gift of your first international assist an apology for my years of bad behavior. Also, you already rocked the blue, so I feel like we're even.”

 

“We did seem to kind of keep… Missing each other. Often in the same place and same time, but almost always as opponents.”

 

“Well, you’ve caught me now.” Tobin smiled.

 

“Perfect. Now I’ll keep you as my personal manicurist! Stuck for life, Heath!”

 

“Speaking of…” Tobin grabbed the bottle of clear polish, and unscrewed the cap. “Hand, please!”

 

Christen extended her left hand, and felt Tobin’s warmth under her palm once more; it made her feel things she couldn’t even really face. It was a secret she was willing to keep to her grave, from her friends and sisters and especially her girlfriend, but the truth resounded - she liked touching Tobin and she liked Tobin touching her. It felt too personal to vocalize - this _person_ had gotten under her skin and after years of watching at a distance, was suddenly talking about what they were going to eat for dinner that night, close enough for Christen to touch her in return. She could see her lips move and wondered what they would feel like, what they would taste like. She saw the freckles on Tobin’s tan cheeks, and all she wanted to do was look closer, to memorize each one.

 

Steady streaks evened out the paint job she’d completed herself, and it was only a few seconds before Tobin was reaching for the other hand.

 

“I hope they have mac ’n cheese. I really like mac ’n cheese.” Tobin looked up into Christen’s face again, a placated smile crossing Christen’s face.

 

“That sounds good!” Christen gently blew on her fingernails, and reached for her phone, snapping a picture and posting to Twitter.

 

 ** _"With @TobinHeath as my roomie, I want to reprint my nails every day.”_** She added a few emojis, and didn’t notice the typo until later. They had mac ’n cheese for dinner.

 

 

***

 

**Part 2 - 2019**

 

They’d been having the conversation for a while, now. Somehow they’d danced around the specifics, and Tobin had insisted that she be the one, “ _I want to_ ,” kissing behind Christen’s ear, teeth grazing her neck and fingers wandering, slipping under layers of clothing, teasing. She was pushed into the cushions of their couch, delightfully breathless.

 

Christen reached for her hands, and held them still, for a moment - “If you’re sure- I don’t want you to think that I expect-“ The freckles she loved so much beamed, small crinkles forming at the corners of her eyes, and Tobin said words that forced her to draw in a deep shaky breath.

 

“I’m sure.”

 

~~~

 

“Do you want me to paint your nails before dinner?” Christen looked up from her book, a piercing stare towards her partner of many years. The subtext was bubbling, present.

 

She didn’t paint her nails all that much anymore; she didn’t make the time, the polish would chip, the nonstop year of travel and games and now Olympic preparation left little time, but she absolutely knew what was happening this time. There’s no reason she’d need to have her nails done, no reason to want to except - so obviously, yes.

 

She felt her heart begin to flutter, and she glanced back at Tobin as she headed towards their bathroom, a small sob catching in her throat. Tobin leaned against the doorframe, hair draped over her shoulder, a warm, silky brown that Christen would regularly get lost in.

 

She picked up a pastel purple and a top coat from the drawer, and bit her lip as she caught her girlfriend’s eye in the mirror. She grabbed Tobin’s hand and wove their fingers together, pulling her towards the table in the kitchen, late afternoon sun leaving plenty of light on the wood. Christen pulled up a chair and then another one, facing each other. They sat, and Christen couldn’t help but hold her hand tighter, shaking a little, 

 

“You’re not just messing with me, right?”

 

Tobin dropped her hands, weaving her fingers into Christen’s hair, pulling their foreheads together to meet in the middle, eyes connecting, noses brushing, soft lips.

 

“I love you.”

 

Tobin pulled back, and rolled the bottle between her hands, mixing the polish, before unscrewing the cap and gently painting each nail, even strokes and steady hands, mirroring many times before, but uniquely familiar to that one time, the first time, over six years prior.

 

They’d been to hell and back since then, wins, losses, death, new life, lifetimes.

 

Yet, there they were again. She looked at her left hand, now painted, noticing it uniquely for a last time, thinking about the rings she’d worn and the new one she’d be getting - and giving.

 

There was a small box she’d hidden in her bedside drawer, each of them keeping a space they agreed not to share. Christen had gotten it engraved, and tucked it away, ready for for the “go.”

 

Tobin let the polish dry, blowing on Christen’s fingers as they sat in the beginnings of a setting sun, November getting darker, earlier each day.

 

“Do you want to go out on the beach with me?”

 

Christen nodded - “I want to grab something first.”

 

Tobin smiled, smoothing down Christen’s hair. “Me too.”

 

 

***

 

Thanks for reading! I haven’t written Preath before, but I love them. <3


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